The Square (and the tangled threads in between)
by carnatiously
Summary: Marinette and Adrien, faced with no further choice, each tell a story about how they'd been akumatized. This does not go down well, however, because Marinette knows Ladybug didn't save Adrien, and Adrien knows Chat Noir didn't save Marinette. Knowing how the Miraculous guard against akumatizations, there's only one assumption they can both make... [chap. 56 of Snippets]
1. Chapter 1

**Ah~**

 **thank you** **carlos13** **for this wonderful idea! I changed it up a teensy bit but I really liked what you mentioned in the review, so it's mostly the same, except for some of my own twists.**

 **Let's go!**

 **~Spoken stories of akumas don't match up and a mess becomes a bigger mess when the kids can't communicate~**

"And…there," Alya said with finality as she finished updating her Ladyblog. Being the sole, trusted reporter for her very own Ladyblog, which also happened to be the best source for superhero news, was no easy task, but Alya prided herself with being the one person to uphold such a successful site. With no fail, she always captured every epic battle moment, as well as the aftermath. Ladybug and Chat Noir had just defeated an akuma half an hour ago, twenty-nine minutes ago they'd fistbumped and departed, and Alya was just finishing up the last edits on her video before posting.

In class.

Of course, when it came to the school system, students had one full hour to get back to their class after an akuma attack. This was due to the fact that sometimes kids got sent to the opposite end of the city in the midst of an outbreak, and one hour was more than enough to catch a bus or metro train back to wherever they needed to be if they couldn't walk. So, Alya was breaking no rules, but several students looked over at her seat curiously as she finished up her business on her phone. Francoise Dupont was always close to the akuma attacks (whether that was a blessing or a curse was up to each individual) and so the students were already seated in class, having nothing to do for a full half hour yet.

"I thought updating your blog gets hard when it's not on the computer," Nino remarked. Alya glanced up from her phone at him.

"Well, yeah. But I'm not an experienced blogger for nothing." Alya puffed with pride. "It's a cinch. Besides, I have enough time. I made a big update."

"Big update?" Adrien asked. "Like the _Chat_ room?" When Alya had first added that to her blog, Adrien had, inexplicably, found the name hi _la_ rious and stated that it was his favorite update ever. Her blog also picked up more followers, from a startlingly large number of Chat Noir fans, and the pun in the name was only pointed out more and more with raising levels of glee.

"No, not that big," Alya admitted, "that's probably my biggest update, like, ever." Adrien grinned and Marinette leaned over to look at her screen.

"Ah, I see," she said when she'd spotted the change. "You made an exclusive akumatized victims list?"

"Yup," Alya affirmed. "It's a full list, and I even added the places where the people got akumatized with a bar graph next to it."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "How'd you find places for every single person?"

"Investigation," Alya vaguely replied. "But most of the people came from this school- it' freakish how Hawkmoth attacks us almost exclusively."

"Talk about it," Nino muttered. He'd pulled out his phone and the Ladyblog was opened up there. "Geez, look at the bar graph! Our bar is, like, a mile above the rest."

"Tap on the bar for any place and you'll get the list of people akumatized there," Alya urged with a grin. "I think that feature is pretty awesome."

"You think right," Adrien agreed as he tapped on Nino's phone. The list opened up and Nino disinterestedly scrolled through, knowing all of the stories about his schoolmates and what had happened. He suddenly paused as he reached the bottom and blinked as he seemed to come to a realization.

"Dude," he said, making Adrien perk to attention, "you've never been akumatized?"

Adrien suddenly broke out in a cold sweat as Nino continued on, "I thought everyone in this class had…"

"Hey, now that I think about it, Marinette hasn't been akumatized either!" Alya said, turning to her friend who was suddenly in a similar state to Adrien. "Didn't Ladybug and Chat Noir say, like, a month ago that the reason they don't get akumatized is because of their miraculous protecting them?"

It was true. People had been questioning, and so they superhero duo had given an answer that seemed vague enough to be safe. In fact, it was exclusively on video on Alya's blog. Right now it was all Marinette and Adrien could do to not outwardly curse their foolish past selves.

"Um," Marinette squeaked. She _could_ make an argument, of course, about how Hawkmoth couldn't akumatize _everyone_ , but that was a weak argument because, well, he could. He'd probably akumatized his way through every student in the school, except for herself- because she was Ladybug- and Adrien… whose reason she didn't have the luxury to think about at the moment.

So then, she could make something up. That would work. Yes, that was what she would do.

Adrien apparently had reached the same conclusion as her in his own head, because he suddenly blurted out, "Ah, I have been akumatized!"

Alya did a double take. "WHAT?"

Adrien floundered, white as a sheet. "Um- that is- I became the… The Model," he said uncertainly, and then nodded along rapidly. "Yeah, The Model. I was gonna, well, attack my dad for giving me so many photoshoots and stuff. But Ladybug was on patrol and she purified my akuma really quick."

"SERIOUSLY?!" Alya cried out. "Why wasn't I told about this?"

"Um, because… I was embarrassed?" Adrien weakly ended. Immediately there was the hand of Nino at his back.

"No need, dude," he said easily and Adrien felt horrible for lying to such honest and caring friends. But he had to! "There's nothing to feel bad about, it's all Hawkmoth's fault. Besides, can't get worse than I did, right? Bubbler," he snorted, spitting the name out like a curse. Adrien laughed a little, feeling a small weight lift itself off of his chest.

That little weight suddenly returned in a crushing tenfold, though, when he noticed how Marinette was staring at him in obvious skepticism. Disbelief. Suspicion. He balked.

"Are you sure?" Marinette suddenly asked. " _Ladybug_ was there and saved you?"

Well, he had to go all or go home. It wouldn't do to look like he didn't believe the lie himself when he had to convince others, especially Marinette who'd unexpectedly turned out to be very dubious.

"Yes," he firmly replied as if he was freshly recalling the memory in his own head. Marinette simply stared at him some more with a frown on her face and he felt like she was taking him apart piece by piece.

"…without Chat Noir?" Marinette finally asked. Adrien blinked stupidly.

 _Damn it!_ He knew he was forgetting something in his explanation!

"Um, well," Adrien laughed. It was just as forced as if he'd had to yank out his own tooth. "I was caught off my guard so she did it herself- or so she told me later," Adrien hastily added when he recalled that akumatized victims weren't supposed to remember anything from when they were possessed. He was glad to have caught that. He felt like he was at a court trial or something.

Marinette could make a very good judge. He felt inclined to tell the truth just by the look she was giving him- _a look he still couldn't figure out!-_ and it was only the thought that he was lying out of good that kept his lips sealed.

"I see," Marinette finally replied.

She knew something was up.

Alya and Nino exchanged bewildered glances as the tension in the air between them suddenly spiked.

Adrien cleared his throat the best he could without seeming guilty (could you suspiciously clear your throat? Was clearing your throat suspicious?) and fished for anything that would turn the attention away from him. Luckily, he didn't have to fish long, because he remembered that apparently, Marinette hadn't been akumatized, either. Which was very curious for him, genuinely, because he had the excuse of being a superhero, but what did Marinette have? He'd like to know.

And so he asked, "What about you?"

Marinette's inquisitory look shattered on her face, leaving behind a fully dumbstruck expression. "Wha?"

"Alya said that you haven't been akumatized," Adrien gently probed albeit nearly buzzing with curiosity.

Marinette blinked. "OH! Um, well, that is to say- uh, just like you, I kept mines secret!"

" _WHAT?_!" Alya positively exploded. "MARINETTE?!"

Alya suddenly started as she realized the entirety of the bored room-in-waiting was staring at her. Without so much as a little blush, as Alya was brazen and simply had little shame, she sat back down as she'd stood up abruptly along with her exclamation.

"Why are these things being kept from me? I run the Ladyblog for heaven's sake!" Alya wailed albeit quieter than before.

Marinette felt bad. She tentatively put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "It's because my situation was similar to Adrien's," she explained, talking slowly so that she could think it through. To everyone else it seemed she was doing that to comfort Alya. "I got akumatized but Ladybug and Chat Noir took care of it really quick." She missed the look thrown her way by Adrien. "I barely knew what happened. If we had told you, then you would ask for details we wouldn't have, and probably post an incomplete post which would just ruin your aesthetic and you'd spend the rest of your days in misery, unable to delete it because then your blog would be incomplete but hating the fact that it was there."

It was so silent by the time she finished speaking that you could hear one of Chloe's pure gold pins drop.

"Wow," Nino finally said. The class, being used to the "peculiar four" as they labeled it (consisting of Marinette, Alya, Adrien and Nino) resumed to what they were doing before. "That's some epic storytelling skills you've got there."

"Not a story, Nino," Marinette solemnly shook her head, "a traumatizing cycle which, out of my love for Alya, I prevented…"

"Shut _up,_ " Alya said with a laugh as she shoved Marinette's shoulder, previous woes forgotten. She _supposed_ that Adrien's and Marinette's stories made sense. It was far too confusing to delve deeper into, and besides, it didn't seem that out of the blue for Ladybug and Chat Noir to take care of an akuma so fast that nobody noticed. The heroes were awesome like that.

"So… Chat Noir saved you?" Adrien asked in a manner much like Marinette had questioned him earlier. She blinked and frowned, feeling like she was taking a multiple choice test: deceivingly easy, and no half-credit given.

"Yes," she replied much faster than she'd have liked. "I mean, yeah. Of course!"

Adrien squinted at Marinette who was suddenly an enigma. Why would she not tell the truth?

Of course, it wouldn't have been believable in the slightest if Marinette said that she was never targeted by Hawkmoth. Hawkmoth had gone after everyone in the school. He went after people for the pettiest of reasons. And everyone knew that Marinette, while she was notoriously kind and popular, had many reasons to be riled up, from being the one to deal with Chloe to not getting enough sleep because of her supposed "inspiration bursts". So there was no way she wouldn't be targeted by Hawkmoth.

Unless…

Adrien's eyes widened and he found an odd sensation biting at the back of his throat, making it hard to swallow or talk or even blink. He turned around and was thankful when class began, finally, as if on cue. He was saved from having to explain himself and instead the day ensued, passing by in a hazy blur. He wasn't sure what he said or did. He couldn't remember. Instead he suddenly found himself in his room, and with Plagg, to face the full brunt of his new discovery.

"Plagg…"

The kwami floated out of Adrien's bag slowly, critically eyeing his holder. This would be a huge turning point for Adrien in his life, if, of course, Adrien realized what Plagg thought he had realized…

"I THINK MARINETTE IS HAWKMOTH!"

Guess not.

 **haha time to make this a new story… three chapters, or four?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2! Here we come!**

 **Who'da thought that the love square could get even more confusing? I sure didn't. Add in a supposed identity from each side of the square onto one other onto their two identities which they already own not that the other knows about one of the identities and… wait… where was I going with this?**

Marinette thanked the lucky ladybugs above that Adrien turned away before she had the chance to scream in his face. The more she stared, the more she grew in hysteria, because there he was, looking perfect as ever!

And she couldn't stand it! Not if the- the _abominable, intrusive_ thought which had just wriggled its maggotish self into her mind was… _true._ By any degree.

No. NO! It couldn't be!

But the more she thought about it… could it be that her initial hunch about Hawkmoth was correct?!

Adrien had lied. He was never "The Model". Marinette knew this because she was Ladybug, and Adrien said Ladybug had saved him, which she _didn't_. In fact, his lie would have been more believable if he had said that Chat Noir saved him. Sure, she'd question how Chat would get rid of the infected butterfly, but she wouldn't have been onto him like she was now.

Adrien had never been akumatized. And Marinette _knew_ whenever he was feeling the slightest bit despondent, which had been quite a few times. She'd trained her keen eye to notice every single twitch of each muscle that his glorious, amazingly chiseled face owned-

Off topic. In any case, he was always packed with things to do which he didn't particularly enjoy. His father didn't pay him much mind. He was _sad_ and, moreover, he was _vulnerable!_

Except apparently he wasn't, because he had never been akumatized. What would have been easy, ripe pickings for Hawkmoth apparently went unnoticed? Marinette didn't believe it. Added onto the fact that Adrien somehow got his hands on a spell book, and was an overall enigma… what with the disappearing…

Marinette barely kept her gasp in. He _always_ disappeared around the time of akuma attacks!

She couldn't believe it. She wouldn't! This couldn't be! The love of her life, the one who she had fallen for his _kindness,_ could not be the evil supervillain that she was fighting on a daily basis. He couldn't! What she had seen that day in the rain was pure, unadulterated kindness…

…or was it a farce?

Marinette suddenly felt like throwing up and stood up quickly, startling her seatmate. Her legs wobbled and she sat back down for a second, having attracted the snickers of Chloe. She didn't care. Marinette stood up again and quickly made her way to Mme. Bustier's desk with all of her things gathered in her arms, telling the teacher in a shaky voice how she felt sick. It wasn't a lie. Apparently Mme. Bustier noticed this, because she cast Marinette a worried look before scribbling down a nurse's note and telling her to go rest. Marinette took the note in jittery hands and began the walk to the door, avoiding Alya's worried gaze. She'd make sure to text her friend soon. First, she just wanted to see… she just had to see his face, that would be all it took. She just had to see Adrien, had to see him in all his honesty, and surely she'd stop feeling so nauseous, right?

She risked a glance back. Adrien seemed to be staring off into space in a daze, a troubled look on his face. It was not what she'd been hoping to see. Marinette felt her stomach flip again and quickly made her way out the door, bee lining it for the nearest restroom instead of the nurse's office. She quickly stepped in. There was nobody- of course, class had just started, and after a whole hour long break too- and so she had no qualms in letting Tikki out before she was fully secured in a stall.

"Marinette? Are you okay?" Tikki asked in concern. She flitted up and felt Marinette's forehead with one of her arms to check her temperature.

"Tikki, Adrien might actually be Hawkmoth because- I don't know if this is really concrete or not- but then again it is the biggest lead I've had- but it just can't be because- because-!"

"Take a deep breath Marinette," Tikki gently but firmly instructed. Only when Marinette had fully complied did she say, "Now, let's try again. What happened?"

Marinette swallowed before starting over. At least her tummy wasn't doing cartwheels anymore. "Okay. So. Alya put this new update on the Ladyblog, right?"

Tikki nodded the affirmative.

"And, so, it shows you whose been akumatized and stuff. So she and Nino looked at the list, and they noticed that Adrien and I have never been akumatized." Marinette recounted the events in her head. "They also remembered that a Miraculous guards someone from being akumatized, like Ladybug and Chat Noir said a month ago. So, to cover my tracks up, I said how Ladybug and Chat Noir saved me so quick that nobody noticed I was akumatized. _But,"_ Marinette stressed, "Adrien said that Ladybug saved him! Which I didn't! So he was lying! Why would he have to lie unless he was Hawkmoth?!"

Tikki absorbed Marinette's words and she looked very… stuck. Often she opened her mouth to say something, and then closed it again, and she even turned around and muttered to herself. Marinette hadn't ever seen Tikki like this. Finally, Tikki faced Marinette with a light smile.

"Oh, Marinette! Is that what you were worrying about? I don't think it's a big deal."

Marinette could only gape at her kwami, utterly dumbfounded. " _What?!_ Me finding out that Adrien- nevermind him being the _love of my life-_ might be Hawkmoth is NOT A BIG DEAL?!"

"Marinette, ssh!" Tikki zipped up and pressed her arms against Marinette's lips. "You're being very loud! What I meant to say was, your assumptions are most likely incorrect."

Half of Marinette, the logical, Ladybug half which was busy hunting down Hawkmoth, wanted to argue against Tikki and lay out all the evidence. The other half of Marinette, the half of Marinette which was madly in love with Adrien, wanted to just go with what Tikki was saying, take it easy.

Marinette went with her Ladybug half. Mostly because she hated open ends. They felt like lies.

"I have _proof,"_ Marinette stressed. "Look. Adrien would be the perfect candidate to be an akumatized victim, no? Even though he's always kind, and happy, his father is cold towards him, his mother is missing, and even holidays are a stress for him!" Tikki couldn't find anything to disagree with. "But, despite all this, he hasn't been akumatized! Hawkmoth, the person who akumatizes anyone for anything because he wants the Miraculous that badly, would never pass up on such an opportunity! _Unless that person was him."_ Marinette was about to turn around, and slump against the door to the toilet, but she faltered as she realized how nasty the bathroom floors could be. Instead, she closed the lid on the toilet (yes, her school was privileged enough to have lidded toilets) and took a seat as she waited for Tikki's counter attack.

Tikki looked very frustrated for some reason. Marinette suspected that if Tikki had hair, she'd be pulling good chunks of it out right about now.

"I… Marinette, there's something I'm not allowed to tell you by kwami law until you find out yourself." Tikki said. Marinette blinked, having not known that there even was such a thing as 'kwami law'. "But… I can assure you that Adrien… he…" A deep, heaving sigh. "Okay, I _can't_ assure you, but think deeper Marinette! Don't reach your final conclusion until you have enough evidence, okay?" Tikki offered an encouraging smile before diving back into Marinette's bag.

Marinette was confused. So was she right, or not…? What did Tikki want her to do?

 _Think deeper!_

Marinette gasped and suddenly stood up from her seat. "I see! I should investigate and try to ask Adrien some questions first. I just have to find out the real reason he lied! Is that it?"

Tikki's response really wouldn't have made a difference to Marinette, who was suddenly rushing outside of the bathroom with newfound vigor. So Tikki found that she could groan all she wanted.

If it wasn't bad before, then this really took the cake. She doubted even Plagg would find such a situation humorous.

…

Marinette sat on a bench in the park, sketching, as she waited for school to end. Her plan was to transform into Ladybug and go to the Agreste mansion approximately ten minutes after school ended, because Adrien would have been dropped off at home by then. She also knew for a fact that he did not have any activities planned for the next hour, so she had time.

Marinette had thought about catching Adrien after school to talk to him, but the mere thought made her blanch. If it wasn't impossible before, then she'd surely die halfway into a sentence _now._ Besides, civilian Marinette had no business asking questions and hunting down Hawkmoth. However, Ladybug certainly did. And so there Marinette was, doodling away absentmindedly in the park in wait. She paused in her distracted strokes for a second to look at what she'd done and found…

…Chat Noir staring right back up at her! Marinette screamed and fell backwards off of the bench, sketchbook falling onto her lap and displaying the very cat's face. Marinette decided not to feel offended that Tikki did not check up on her, seeing as Marinette was always tripping about anyways, and instead pushed herself back up.

She frowned at the drawing and erased his round pupils, drawing in slitted ones. There, that was better.

Marinette faltered as she looked at the drawing of the grinning superhero. What about Chat? Would she tell him about her discovery so he could help her? Ladybug and Chat Noir did work better together as a team, after all.

But then again, Marinette recalled Chat telling Ladybug that he was friends with Adrien. And, there was that time when Adrien asked her "wasn't Chat Noir cool? Charming? Handsome?", etc. Clearly they thought well of each other. If she told Chat that Adrien might be Hawkmoth, what would his reaction be? In fact, when she'd presented her thoughts about the elder Agreste, he seemed startled and immediately asked for proof, skeptically. Right now she didn't have anything concrete and she still needed to ask Adrien some questions. It made her feel slightly guilty, but she would have to keep it from Chat for now. Just until she got more evidence, that either proved completely that Adrien was Hawkmoth or disproved it, in which case she wouldn't have to tell him at all.

She suddenly jerked as she realized that she'd been adding more details onto Chat's face as she was thinking about him and had even drawn his ring on the bottom right corner of the page, paw prints and all. The drawing was startlingly good for something she subconsciously did, and as she held it up to examine it further, a passing girl noticed.

"Oh my gosh! Did you draw that?!" She exclaimed, causing Marinette to yelp and spin around. It was a girl wearing a backpack like she'd just gotten out of school. Marinette suspected she went to Francoise Dupont because that was the nearest school to the park. "That's amazing! I love Chat Noir!"

Marinette cheeks turned red from embarrassment. Did this girl think she was a Chat fangirl?! Well, she _was_ drawing his face. To anyone else it would be the most logical conclusion. "Oh, um, thank you! Do you want the drawing?"

The girl gasped. "Really? I can?"

Marinette smiled, pride blooming in her chest. She, as an artist, loved it when people appreciated her work. This girl was very sweet and outgoing and she knew her drawing would be in good hands. "Sure, just let me sign it here, and…" Marinette's tongue poked out a little as she put her signature on her drawing and handed it over. "Here you go!"

The girl gingerly took it like it was made of glass and stared at it before squealing and stooping down to hug Marinette. The pigtailed girl was startled for a second before smiling and hugging back for a brief second. She must really like Chat Noir. Oh, how Marinette wished that this girl would be in her class instead of _Chloe._ Then life would be truly perfect.

"Marinette," the girl read off of her signature when she'd let go from the hug. "Thank you, Marinette!"

"No problem," Marinette replied with a smile. Marinette checked the time on her phone and gasped, seeing how it had been seven minutes since school ended. She would have to transform soon. "I've gotta go now," Marinette said apologetically as she packed her things up and slung her backpack over her shoulders. She gave the girl a little wave. "Bye!"

"Bye! And thank you!"

Marinette hurried out of the park and ran across the street, situating herself in between two buildings where there were no people. Tikki floated out of her purse.

"Wow, whoever she was, she was very nice!"

"I know, right?" Marinette agreed. "I think she goes to my school. Maybe I can convince her to switch places with Chloe in our class."

Tikki giggled. "You'd do anything for that."

"Okay, Tikki. Time to put my plan in action. Transform me!"

There was a flash of pink light, and Ladybug stood in Marinette's place. With no further delay, she scaled the building to her right and began swinging towards the Agreste mansion, which was, in fact, very close by. Just as she was nearing the backside of the mansion, though, she was suddenly met with the sight of Chat Noir leaping with unreal speed right towards her. Luckily, this time she was able to keep her scream in when she saw his face and she quickly sidestepped before he could bowl her over.

His baton retracted and he skidded to a stop, metal boots causing gravel to slide off of the roof. He turned around with a bewildered stare. "Ladybug?!"

"Chat Noir," Ladybug replied. The feeling of guilt was tugging at her chest. She momentarily chastised herself for feeling so bad when, in reality, she was actually keeping it from Chat for his best interests. _You're not being a bad partner,_ Ladybug told herself, _this is fine._ All her contemplating caused her face to screw up, which she noticed only after she stopped repeating the same mantra in her head over and over again. She half-expected Chat to make some kind of joke or comment on the matter, but paused when she saw that he also looked troubled, lost in thoughts of his own.

For once the two of them didn't know what to say. Ladybug decided to speak up and asked, "So where are you headed?"

Chat snapped out of his reverie and blinked before nervously tugging at his gloves and looking away skittishly. "Uhh- not- not anywhere, really. I'm just out in the neighborhood…"

"It didn't really seem that way when you were shooting at me like a bullet," Ladybug remarked. Chat sheepishly laughed and then he turned his catlike gaze onto her, as if to direct the attention elsewhere.

"Then you, My Lady? What are you doing?"

Ladybug found herself put on the spot and cursed Chat in her head. Then she cursed him again when she'd realized how she unintentionally punned. "Um! Same as you! I decided to just take a break… from above…"

A familiar grin crept onto Chat's face and Ladybug relaxed a little. His nervous face was much more unnerving and guilt-wracking to her than his usual shit-eating grin. "Great minds think alike, hmm? Or should I say great… meow-inds?"

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "That was a stretch." Chat pouted. "Now, I've gotta get going, Chat. My break is almost over." This caused Chat to suddenly start, as if he'd remembered some unattended business as well.

"Ah, of course M'Lady! _Cat_ cha later!" And he was off again, leaping in the opposite direction. Ladybug watched him go for a second before leaping onto the next roof, which happened to belong to the Agreste mansion. She made her way around the building and latched her yoyo onto a tile before lowering herself, right in front of Adrien's window. Hesitantly, she leaned forward and put her eyes to the glass, peeking inside the room.

Empty.

Empty?

Why was his room empty?

Ladybug frowned and took a closer look. No, he wasn't in bed. The bathroom door was open and revealed it to be void of his presence as well. He wasn't at his sofa, his computer table, his foosball table, skateboard ramp, or climbing wall either. The room was really, truly barren.

Her frown deepened and she pulled herself back up onto the roof tiles. Where was he? She was positive that he didn't have his fencing class until the next hour. Or was she wrong? Had they changed that? No, but she checked their website for any updates too and it wasn't coming until three months later (which she was already prepared for as well)…

Huh.

A heavy weight of disappointment sat in her stomach now that her plan had been foiled before she could even put it into action. She decided there was nowhere else to go but home and she swung back close to the ground, taking the shortcut she knew well. Several people saw her and cheered as she passed. Ladybug allowed herself to smile for a few photos before rocking forward on her yoyo faster to dash behind the bakery. She dropped her transformation and Tikki simply nuzzled up to Marinette's cheek when she saw the downtrodden expression on her face.

"Next time," Tikki promised. "You always have a chance."

"I knooow… buuut…" Marinette whined. "I want answers noooow…"

Tikki giggled, seeing her holder's face lift a little. "I've never had any holder as mature as you, Marinette." She flew back into Marinette's purse when she was sure the girl felt a little better. Marinette sighed, and walked around to the front doors of the bakery. The bell jingled as she entered and one of her parent's employees at the register greeted her. She replied with a smile and went on in the back where her parents were working with several others. They paused and faced her with matching smiles when they saw her come in. She felt a little bit more of the disappointment lift from her chest.

"Hello, Marinette!" Sabine chimed. "How was your day?"

"It was good," Marinette fibbed. It wasn't _horrible_ , per se. Just… some _unfavorable_ things happened. "Nothing interesting happened, though."

"Aww, that's too bad," Tom commented. "Nothing happened with that Adrien boy then?"

"PAPA!" Laughter rose in the room, from the parents and the workers alike, and Marinette fixed them all with a half-hearted, red faced glare. "I think I'll go do my homework, thanks."

"Have fun!" They all sang and she pivoted on her foot, heading up the stairs into her room with newfound vigor. Tikki was laughing inside her purse and Marinette barely refrained from calling traitor.

However, just as she was nearing the trapdoor, there was a muted thump from the other side and Marinette jerked to a stop before cautiously reaching inside her backpack for her sharpest pencil, exchanging one brief look with Tikki. Then, she quietly eased the trapdoor open and peeked into her room. No robber to be seen; everything looked untouched…

She entered the room all the way and slowly turned around in circles, viewing every nook and cranny. It was only when she'd done her third complete 360 that she spotted a shadowy figure out of her peripheral vision and, with no further ado, she flung her pencil forward like a dart.

Chat Noir yelped and barely managed to duck in time. The pencil flew past and the sharp tip soundly lodged itself into the wall, bringing at least half an inch of pencil digging into the pink plaster.

"…Holy _cat,_ Marinette! Are you trying to render me blind?!"

Marinette dumbly blinked at him, her hand still in the air, before realizing what she did and jumping to his side. "Oh my God! I'm so sorry!" Then she paused. "Wait, why should I apologize? You're in my room! Why are you in my room?!" Was _this_ his 'neighborhood business'?

Chat held his hands up in a placating manner. "Calm down! I landed on your balcony and I heard you open your trapdoor, but then you didn't come up so I decided to come down."

Marinette fixed him with a disbelieving look. "You _heard_ me open my trapdoor?"

He pointed to one of his faux ears as explanation and Marinette relented. "Okay, but you don't just enter someone's room like that."

Chat winced. "Sorry. I just…" he carefully searched Marinette's face and she quirked a brow. "Um, bad day?"

Marinette's other brow quirked to leave her with furrowed eyebrows. One corner of her mouth screwed up. "What?"

"Umm, I'm just asking. It… seems like you've had a bad day?" When Marinette didn't say anything Chat cringed. "Ah, I guess my intrusion doesn't really help."

Marinette felt a little sorry for snapping at him (and nearly stabbing his eye out with a pencil). Maybe she _was_ being cross. And maybe it was due to her less than stellar day. Marinette sighed and brushed past him to sit down on her chaise. She was, honestly, lucky to have a friend like Chat who could understand her so well and would listen to her. She did feel a little like unloading her problems.

"Okay, well, yes. My day was… not as amazing as it could have been," she offered, and one corner of Chat's mouth lifted. "I, um, how do I say this?" She could not say, 'I transformed into Ladybug and went to Adrien's house to ask him some questions in case he was Hawkmoth but he wasn't there', however unfortunate it was, and so she would have to be vague. "I wanted to… get something from a person," Marinette said. "But it didn't happen. So now I have to try again next time." Her shoulders sagged in a sigh and she leaned back on her hands, looking up at the ceiling. "It's surely going to take a miracle to get what I need, though. Ugh! I just wish I could go back in the past a little bit and-" she was referring to the bit about how she exploited that the Miraculouses protected against akumatization a month ago here- "-take some words back. Then this mess wouldn't have happened. You know what I mean?"

She looked to him and, she guessed he didn't know what she meant, because he looked white as a sheet. She'd never seen Chat so shaken. And he was suddenly twisting the ring around on his right hand nervously. "Chat?"

"Gah! I- uh- that's, that's unfortunanan… unforch- unfortunate. A-All apologies, princoi- princess, but, this cat's gotta clash!" Chat cried. "I _mean_ daaaash! 'Kay bye!" With a speed that could rival that time back on the rooftop, he launched himself towards her open trapdoor, flying right out. Marinette watched him go with a blank stare.

"Is he okay?" Marinette asked. Tikki did all of her face-palming before she floated out of the bag to join Marinette.

"Who knows," the kwami vaguely said.

"He missed the chance for two puns." And then, for better measure, she added, "Un _fur_ tunate and a _paw_ logies."

"That he did," Tikki vaguely replied.

Marinette sighed and turned to her backpack. "Nothing I can do about it now. I just gotta conquer this homework…"

 **A/N: So Marinette is on the same train of thought as Adrien is. Unsurprisingly. That train's gonna run off a bridge and they won't notice.**

 **And Marinette, without knowing it, gave Chat very good evidence that she was Hawkmoth. Of course. AND, Ladybug has decided not to tell Chat about her suspicions, which could have solved everything right at the root. OF. COURSE.**

 **Next chapter, we start where I left off in chapter 1! Not sure how many chapters this story will be, but I'm 99% sure it will be more than 4 chapters.**

 **THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! I LOVE YOU ALLLLLLLLLLLL !**


	3. Chapter 3

**LET'S switch to Adrien's side of the story! More OBLIVIOUSNESS. My favorite spice.**

 _About 10 minutes ago…_

"I THINK MARINETTE IS HAWKMOTH!"

Plagg may have thought Adrien was deceivingly stupid before, but now he wasn't sure. Now he was thinking that the reason Adrien's head was so fluffy and comfortable was because he didn't _have a brain inside his head or a skull to protect it!_

"Kid. What."

Adrien turned around, ran his hands through said fluffy-and-comfortable hair, and then turned back around to face Plagg, his face more desperate than before. "Marinette. Is. Hawkmoth!"

Plagg knew he wasn't supposed to give hints, but surely rectifying the supervillain's _gender_ was fine. It was vital. Yes, it was vital. _Needed._ This was what Plagg told himself as he tried giving Adrien his answer in the most impartial way possible.

"Hawkmoth," Plagg said slowly, "is a man."

"How do we know for sure?" Adrien countered. Plagg could just tear his own whiskers out. "The only thing we've seen of Hawkmoth was when we were fighting Volpina, where Hawkmoth was too far away to tell, or Hawkmoth's head made of _black butterflies_ when we fought Stoneheart!It could have been skewed. And it was covered completely with a face mask. _And_ the voice was amplified all over Paris, which could have deepened it."

"I think you're trying too hard to look for evidence that's not there," Plagg deadpanned.

"But look! Marinette disappears around the time of akuma attacks! _And_ she just lied about getting akumatized, when she never did. Why would she have to do that unless she was Hawkmoth?!"

 _That's because she's Ladybug, you dimwit!_ Plagg bit down on his tongue to ensure he didn't say his thoughts out loud. This kid! He was impossible!

"Well, even if she _was_ Hawkmoth, why would she want the Miraculouses?" Plagg pointed out. Adrien suddenly faltered.

"You're… right. She's already talented, she has a loving family, lots of friends, isn't bad off in the financial area either, and she's really pretty," Adrien mused, ticking things off. Plagg sighed. This wasn't going to turn into a lovesick ramble, would it? It was starting to sound like one. "I can't think of anything she'd want to wish for if she _was_ Hawkmoth." Adrien sagged in relief. "Sorry, Plagg. I think I was just out of my mind for a second there! Of course Marinette's not Hawkmoth. She's too sweet."

Plagg simply nodded along. Adrien continued, "Besides, I've visited her as Chat Noir! If she were Hawkmoth, she'd try to take my ring from me, right?"

Plagg didn't point out how Chat Noir was a superhero, the one better enforced in close combat at that, and that nobody in their right mind- let alone a mastermind like Hawkmoth- would try to attack him as a civilian. Instead Plagg nodded along, eager to get the ordeal over with.

"Phew." Adrien exhaled. But then his sagged form suddenly shot up. "Wait! But I want to know why she lied, then!"

Plagg groaned. "Nooooo! Don't do this! Do it tomorrow! Or, better yet, _never!_ "

"No," Adrien wasted no time in retaliating. "I want to know. Besides, I… sorta remember her going home sick." Adrien squinted and pooched his lips as he picked out the faint memory from his muddled mess of the day. "I could just drop in and ask her about that to divert the attention."

Plagg sighed. It was a lose-lose situation for him no matter what. He chose to avoid going down the path of Adrien freaking out because his _friend_ was possibly Hawkmoth, and this was the price that Plagg now had to pay. "Fine. Just get it over with fast!"

"Gotcha. Transform me!"

…

Chat was already feeling a little remorseful- okay, very remorseful, for keeping his suspicions, however brief, from Ladybug. He hadn't expected to almost slam into her on a rooftop during a time of no akuma attacks, and he was forced to come up with an excuse on the spot. He decided to keep his knowledge from his partner. The very thought made him feel uncomfortable and weighed down, but he had to remind himself that he wasn't sure about Marinette being Hawkmoth. If he told Ladybug, then she'd most likely jump straight on and interrogate Marinette.

Chat didn't want that. Marinette was sweet. Marinette was his friend. Marinette was _Marinette._ He didn't want to see her being hacked into by Ladybug, unless he was sure that she deserved it.

Which, by the way, she didn't. He already knew that. He was just dropping by to see why she lied. Marinette was not Hawkmoth, he was sure of it.

Or so he had thought ten minutes ago.

"DETRANFORM ME! DETRANSFORM ME!"

Plagg was sent flying out of the ring and the kwami smoothly rolled into a crossed-arm position midair. "That was quick. I expected you to stay for your girlfriend's…"

Adrien was nearly hyperventilating and walking around in rapid circles. Plagg faltered. "…sweets?"

"I can't believe it!" Adrien was hissing. "No! Marinette is- Marinette _is_ Hawkmoth?!"

Plagg's little jaw dropped. " _Kid!_ We just went over this-"

"YES BUT," Adrien interrupted, throwing a finger in the air to point at Plagg, "I just went to her. Then I asked her if she was having a bad day. Right? That was the plan?" Adrien didn't give Plagg time to respond and instead continued on in a rush, "So I did! I asked her if she had a bad day! And do you _know what she said?!"_

"As a matter of fact, I don't-"

"She said she wanted to _get something from someone._ But it _didn't happen_ so she would have to _try next time_ and that she wished to GO IN THE PAST!" Adrien ended in falsetto, out of breath.

Plagg couldn't believe it. That Marinette girl sure had her way with words. If he didn't know better he'd think she was pranking his admittedly gullible holder. But unfortunately she was just as gullible and it was just Adrien's luck that she chose the _perfect_ wording. It was icing on the hellish cake the two idiots had baked together.

"Uhh… I don't know what to tell you," Plagg started, and immediately backtracked. No, that was not the right thing to say! Adrien looked like a terrified deer caught in headlights with that statement. "What I mean is! That just seems like… she could have been referring to anything."

"She said it'd take a _miracle_ to get what she wanted _,"_ Adrien whispered. "Do you know what's a miracle, Plagg? Because I think a Miraculous sure is a miracle…"

Marinette just _had_ to use the word _miracle._ Plagg was going to be two whiskers balder soon and he was not looking forward to it.

The kwami just heaved a great big sigh. "I give up. Do you have any cheese?"

Adrien didn't hear Plagg and instead pulled on his hair. "WHAT DO I DO?! I _should_ tell Ladybug but I don't want to! Even though Marinette is probably Hawkmoth I still want to be her friend. Plagg, am I a trash partner for wanting that and not telling Ladybug?!"

Plagg knew that in his current state Adrien would take any snarky comment he said literally. And, he wouldn't give Plagg any cheese. He'd have to humor his holder with a real answer before he could eat. "No, kid, you're not," Plagg drily said. "You're fine. Do what you must but I need my _cheese!"_

"You're awfully lax about what could be a huge revelation!" Adrien cried out. Plagg refrained from rolling his eyes.

"I'm just not convinced," Plagg lamely replied. Adrien frowned in thought.

"Well… she _could_ have been referring to something else," the boy mused, and Plagg's heart soared. Was his holder finally learning what reason was?! "But… what could _she_ want? What could she possibly want that requires her to _'try again'_?" Adrien pondered in deep thought. He suddenly gasped.

"I should ask!"

"GIVE ME MY CHEESE!"

…

The next day, Adrien got ready for school with a purpose. Well, he always did have a purpose, but this time, he had something in mind other than educating himself and spending time with his friends and hopefully making new ones. This time, he was determined to ask Marinette what it was she wanted!

Okay… maybe not ask Marinette directly. He'd get jitters, however stupid that was. Instead he would ask Alya, or Nino, but if worst came to worst he could ask her the one thing that she badly wanted in the most suave, unsuspicious manner he could muster for one minute… and use Christmas or her birthday as an excuse!

Yes, it was foolproof! _Considering_ the very slight chance that Marinette was Hawkmoth, then it was obvious that he couldn't go to her as Chat Noir. His less-than-stellar departure from her room the day before must have put her suspicions to an all-time high, considering she was Hawkmoth. So instead, asking her as Adrien was the safest way to go. And maybe on the way, considering she _wasn't_ Hawkmoth, he could ask her why she lied. Unless she _was_ Hawkmoth, in which case he already knew why she lied, but in the case that she _wasn't_ -

"You're giving me a headache," Plagg growled. Apparently he had been thinking out loud. "It's too early for this!"

"Sorry, Plagg," Adrien answered, not sounding very apologetic. "On one end Marinette is far too kind to be anything like Hawkmoth. On the other end, I don't know what else all the signs can point to! It's very confusing."

 _You don't even know what 'confusing' is,_ Plagg thought to himself. Adrien either paid no mind to, or didn't notice Plagg's stony-eyed expression as he finished packing his things up and heading down for his daily uneventful breakfast. Surprisingly enough, nothing eventful happened as Adrien ate his sad croissant and snuck Plagg some cheese while Nathalie was turned away, and the drive to school was wonderfully stoic like usual too. Finally, Adrien arrived to school and he quickly jumped out of the car (and didn't forget to tell Gorilla thank you, after all, he was no Chloe), heading towards the school. He saw Marinette and Alya out on the steps and was about to greet them, and smoothly transition into his question for Marinette, when the aforementioned girl suddenly squealed something, voice shifting in and out…

"…Adrien's… ring… on me?!"

Immediately Adrien's blood ran cold and he stood there for a second, completely absent to the world around him, until he snapped out of it and realized he should _run!_ He sprinted past the girls on the steps, akin to the way a person with arachnophobia might sprint past a spider on the wall, and skidded into the school, pressing himself flat to the wall, heaving, ignoring passing stares.

She was onto him!

She was _onto him!_

How was he going to sit in the same class as Hawkmoth who knew he was Chat Noir now?!

 _It's okay,_ he told himself, _you're Chat Noir for a reason! You're not a fighter for nothing!_

"Dude?"

The highest-pitched sound that Adrien did not know he was capable of making flew out of his mouth in a shriek. Nino stared at him, hand still in the air from where he was about to place it on Adrien's shoulder. The students that were previously sending dubious glances Adrien's way now stood stock-still in open mouthed gapes, murmuring rushing between them after fifteen seconds of stoned silence. Amongst the wide eyed crowd was Marinette. Adrien had never felt so mortified, not even when he publicly flew face-first into a lamppost. At least that act was somewhat heroic. And _not as Adrien Agreste._

"I could use Ladybug's luck right about now," he muttered. With a bright red face, he grabbed Nino's wrist out of the air and tugged him away as quick as he could.

He missed the way Marinette suddenly tensed in the crowd.

 **aww… poor Adrien… he embarrassed himself in front of HAWKMOTH!**

 **They go from their initial assumptions, to "wait no way he/she is too un-Hawkmothy!",to garnering all the evidence needed to prove that the other IS Hawkmoth because their counterpart is horribly stupid with words! Oh joy!**

 **MERRY LATE CHRISTMAS! Look forward to the next head-bashingly wonderful chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Me: No, Marinette! Don't you dare think what I think you're thinking! Lots of people say that they want Ladybug's luck in Paris! You just think Adrien saying it is horrific because you are PARANOID of him being HAWKMOTH! WHICH HE'S NOT!**

 **Marinette: *doesn't listen and instead freaks out***

 **Me:**

It was the third time that Marinette's mindset flip-flopped from "Adrien isn't Hawkmoth" to "Adrien _is_ Hawkmoth", so she took it surprisingly well, like she'd been plucking flower petals and uttering love-me's, love-me-not's. Maybe it helped that Adrien had evacuated from the vicinity at startling speeds with Nino in tow, so she couldn't see his face, but still. All she did was tense up a little and then relax right as Alya leaned in with an elbow nudge.

"Your boyfriend's going crazy," she muttered with a snicker. "What was that about Adrien's engagement ring on you, again?"

Marinette didn't trust herself to break her calmness-streak by speaking, so she just shrugged. Deep inside she had a fear that Adrien had _heard_ her when she'd been in her most recent rampaging fantasy, but she had more pressing matters on mind.

'Lucky' was the opposite of how she'd describe the life of a girl who found out that she was fighting the love of her life on a daily basis. That was unfortunately not her Ladybug namesake.

Now that Marinette knew for _sure_ that Adrien was definitely, undoubtedly, _unequivocally_ Hawkmoth, she had two options. One, tell Chat and work with him to… to defeat Adrien? To stop him? Take his Miraculous? She wasn't sure yet. She couldn't imagine any of that going down.

Two… she could try talking to Adrien and easing him out of the Miraculous. Again, she wasn't sure how that would work, especially with her time frame and all, but this option had more of her hope weighing on it. Adrien was no _bad guy._ She knew it. Even if he was Hawkmoth, he had kindness in him that he still showed others. His intentions were pure. He still had a second chance, a chance to redeem himself. In fact, the whole situation just made her sad; all he wanted back was his parents.

The second option had more of her hope, but the first option was surely more logical. She and Chat were the iconic duo, the unstoppable force when working together, and they could put an end to Paris' onslaught of akumas if they stopped the source. _If only she could tell Chat._

Between the shame of not having told Chat who Hawkmoth was, and the love she still felt for a sure-to-be supervillain, she wasn't sure which one pulled harder but they were both doing a fine and dandy job of tearing her apart.

She could, of course, try letting Adrien go… then option number one would go by without a hitch. But _that_ idea was even more out-of-the-world than anything else. How could she possibly let him go? She imagined his face smiling at her from under an umbrella with rain pounding down around them and barely held in a sigh.

He didn't make falling out of love with a supervillain an easy job. Or, more accurately, a possible job.

Which option did she take?!

"Marinette!" She jolted as Alya snapped her fingers in her face. "Were you fantasizing again?"

"Eheh…" _If fantasizing counts as making a decision that will influence the future of Paris,_ Marinette did not say. "Sorry about that. You got me."

Alya shook her head fondly. "You've gone so far to plan what engagement ring _Adrien_ will propose to _you_ with," she told Marinette as they began walking to class before the bell rung and the inevitable stampede of teenagers met their call. "How does someone even plan that?"

"It's hard work being this talented," Marinette mourned and Alya shook with laughter.

They entered the classroom which was empty- save for Nino and Adrien sitting at their usual spots, conversing. It dwindled when they saw the girls in the doorway. Nino waved while Adrien turned an unusual shade of pinkish red and offered a strained smile.

"Hey boys!" Alya greeted, unfazed. "Are you good today, Adrien?"

"W-Wuh?!"

"You know, the whole thing that just happened," Alya said lightly. She grinned. "That was a very impressive high note if I do say so myself."

The pinkish tint deepened. Adrien groaned in humiliation and buried his head in his arms. "I'm having an off day," his muffled voice explained. Marinette duly noted that nobody had been akumatized yet today.

"Well, Marinette here could probably help you out with that," Alya said with another nudge. Marinette and Adrien both froze up.

"NO!" They both yelled at the same time. Immediately Marinette snapped her head to the side only to lock eyes with him. She absently wondered if her neck would suffer from whiplash.

"Um, not that, I mean, that is to say-" Marinette sputtered. So much for option two. If she ever had any chance of speaking to Adrien, let alone do something as abstruse as talking him out of evil, she'd just smashed it into dust.

Then she realized that Adrien had yelled _no,_ too. While there was the part of her that was despondent as expected, it didn't overwhelm her and make her want to curl up into a hole like it would have, say, two days prior. No, now that Marinette was suddenly overwhelmed with new, valid knowledge about Adrien's _really real secret identity,_ her suspicions were at an all-time high. Adrien did not want Marinette to speak with him. Adrien, who was Hawkmoth, didn't want to speak to Marinette. Adrien, who was usually kind no matter what- but was still Hawkmoth- did not want to speak with Marinette, who he usually didn't hesitate speaking to (even if what came out of her mouth was garbled)…

Marinette narrowed her eyes. Only one way to test her theory.

"I mean," she said easily, "I can't help right now. I… um…" Okay, the whole _talking_ thing was decreasing in ease. Exponentially. But still, she had something to do and she would do it to the fullest extent, mark Ladybug's grave! "I have some business with _butterflies._ " She met Adrien's eyes with a level gaze.

His shocked, openmouthed expression confirmed everything she could have hoped to know. Any other person would have shot her a bewildered glance, much like Nino and Alya were doing, but Adrien looked like he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

He knew she knew he was Hawkmoth!

Furthermore, this was like the nail in the coffin for her regarding her options. Now that she knew that _he_ knew that _she_ knew he was Hawkmoth, she would have to go with option one. Tell Chat and defeat Hawkmoth. Defeat Adrien.

Though… this didn't mean that, after all of it was over, she couldn't help Adrien get back on his feet. She could aid him; provide a shoulder to lean on. That would be nice.

"Marinette, what the fu-" Mme. Bustier entered the room and Alya quickly changed course. "-uuuuunky groove you got there?" And that was the conclusion to the conversation, much to Alya's chagrin, Marinette's relief and Nino's confusion. Adrien was in a different place altogether.

…

Adrien couldn't _believe_ it!

It was one thing to know that the civilian identity of Hawkmoth was onto you and that you had to be on your guard. It was a completely different thing to have them outright say it to your face!

He was thankful he'd been sitting at that moment, but that was the only thing he could find in himself to be thankful for. Marinette was Hawkmoth. Marinette knew he was Chat Noir. And Marinette was going to strike soon! She'd basically declared it to him. (Right in front of his salad.)

Despite all this, Adrien found himself habitually calming his nerves. Maybe it was because he was used to schooling his own emotions. Maybe it was because he'd already known Marinette was Hawkmoth. And maybe, even though thinking about it made him feel copper-mouthed with guilt and think that he was a horrible superhero, it was because he _still_ wanted to be Marinette's friend.

That was ridiculous. He knew it was ridiculous and yet he did nothing to alleviate himself of the stress and give up on her. How could he give up on _Marinette?_ In fact, the words 'give', 'up', and 'Marinette' didn't even belong in the same sentence. Unless someone was to say "Marinette would never give up". Then it was fine.

He didn't know why he was so high-strung on sticking with Marinette, but at this point he had no choice but to tell Ladybug about her being Hawkmoth and hope that the heroine wouldn't instantly go in for the kill. Maybe after Marinette was defeated, and her reasons for hunting the Miraculous down and such were resolved, no matter how long it took, he would restore _Marinette-_ Marinette. He'd help her. That'd be nice.

In the meantime… all he had to do was survive one day in school sitting directly in front of Marinette and try not to die before he could meet up with Ladybug. That proved to be much easier said than done, because he already felt like there were holes in his back even though she probably wasn't even staring at him. Then again, she knew he was Chat Noir. He supposed that was reason enough to stare.

About that- he had no idea how she figured him out! When had he faltered? Had it been one of the times when Chat Noir stopped on Marinette's balcony? He knew he never should have done such a thing! But he hadn't even known she was Hawkmoth, could he be to blame? And… who wouldn't want to come back to pastries and hot cocoa and nightlong talks with a funny and sweet girl?

…Nobody, that's who, and he wasn't about to be the first one.

 _Afternoon_ , Adrien told himself repeatedly. _In the afternoon, you can start the stop to this mess._

Marinette repeated a similar mantra in her head.

 **RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS SALAD? REALLY MARINETTE?**

 **And also, I blinked like three or four times in confusion, too, when dear Marinette thought "she knew that he knew that she knew". All for the sake of portraying her crazy thought process.**

 **I'm thinking five chapters. probably six 'cause I'm inconsistent. Who knows?**

 **THANKS FOR REVIEWS! I DON'T GET TO REPLY LIKE I USED TO BUT I LOVE THEM SO MUCH THANK U (INSERT HEARTS BECAUSE DOESN'T REGISTER THE LESS THAN/MORE THAN SIGNS)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Just in case you're confused, here's where we're at:**

 **Marinette thinks that Adrien is Hawkmoth. Adrien thinks that Marinette is Hawkmoth. Adrien thinks Marinette knows that he is secretly Chat Noir. Marinette thinks Adrien is aware of the fact that she knows he is Hawkmoth.**

 **Ladybug does not tell Chat Noir her suspicions because she thinks he has emotional ties with the Agrestes and would want solid proof. Chat Noir does not tell Ladybug his suspicions because he thinks she will immediately hack into Marinette, which he does not want.**

 **Adrien is not Hawkmoth. Marinette is not Hawkmoth. Tikki and Plagg are done.**

"Weren't you planning on going right after school?"

Tikki calmly floated above Marinette's monitor and watched her holder pace back and forth across the room at a startlingly fast speed. Marinette had been at it for the better part of a half-hour, the first three hours after school being spent on doing everything _but_ transforming like she'd planned. This meant that Marinette completed the night's homework for all her classes. And the next night's. And the night after that. Tikki suspected that if Marinette kept up this odd productive-procrastination, she'd be the next best student after Max.

But alas, the kwami had to push her holder in a different direction. There was only so much confusion about identities that Tikki could handle before reaching a breaking point.

"It's already dark outside," Tikki pointed out to the still-pacing Marinette. "If not today, you're going to have to sit through another day in school with _Adrien_ tomorrow to get another chance." It was a cruel and twisted card to play, but Tikki was nothing if not desperate. A screeching sort of noise escaped Marinette's throat.

"NO! I'd die!" She pulled on her hair. Tikki sent her a very pointed look and Marinette groaned.

"I know I made a plan and everything, but… it's _nerve-wracking,_ " Marinette said. "Imagine. I'm going to tell Chat Noir tonight, and then _something_ will have to go down, and by tomorrow morning Paris will either be freed or doomed. I'm too young to have such an influence!" Marinette wailed dramatically.

Tikki held back a sigh. "Marinette, things will probably not go the way you're imagining. And I know you're probably imagining a huge, dramatic showdown in a dark and dingy lair, aren't you?" Marinette's expression spoke for her when her vocal chords didn't work, confirming just what Tikki had said. "Just _go,"_ Tikki pressed, "You need to discuss with Chat!" Tikki then added on under her breath, "For more reasons than one, too."

Marinette still looked hesitant and Tikki took pity. "I know you might be scared, but-"

"PFFT! Me? Scared? _Me?"_ Marinette waved a hand in the air. "Impossible! I'm not _scared._ I'm just being cautious."

Tikki offered Marinette a flat look. "Good for you, you've taken more than the necessary precautions. You've done homework for the next three nights, you tried sketching which didn't work, and your _parents_ had to kick _you_ out of the bakery even though they usually ask you for help. And we both know you won't be able to think about anything else until you speak to Chat." Tikki decided to play another touchy card. She was feeling merciless today. "He's your partner. Don't you trust him?"

Just as expected, Marinette's expression crumbled into an indignant one. "O-Of course I do! If I can't trust Chat, I can't trust anybody else! But I just…" Marinette sighed. "I know I said how I'd help Adrien get back on his feet and whatnot after he was defeated, but that was _before._ I don't want to fight him. I thought he was a friend…" Marinette frowned.

Tikki was torn between feeling bad and screaming.

"Mari _nette._ Go to Chat. He is your partner. He always makes you feel better," Tikki urged. "Together you two can think of a solution. I'm sure he will be affected too and won't want to fight Adrien, either-" _That's because nobody sane would fight themselves. "-_ but you two will make it! Sitting around in here and mulling it over will accomplish nothing."

 _Finally!_ Tikki could laugh and jump for joy at the expression of determination that was now on Marinette's face. _She's finally ready! It only took three-and-a-half hours but that's not the point!_

"You're right," Marinette agreed. "Sorry about this, Tikki. It's time to get to work. Transform me!"

Tikki sighed in relief as she entered the sanctuary of the Ladybug Miraculous. Finally. When she would fly out of the Miraculous at Marinette's detransformation, everything would be sorted out and untangled.

The little kwami should have known better.

…

Ladybug blinked in surprise as she saw one message from Chat left on her yoyo-device. Usually it was her leaving messages for him, not the other way around. The message was left twelve minutes ago.

Curiously she opened up the message and put her device to her ear. ' _Ladybug,'_ Chat's voice rang out, _'Meet me at our spot on the Eiffel soon as you can today. I found out who Hawkmoth is.'_

The line clicked and Ladybug lowered the phone with a small, relieved smile on her face. So Chat had already found out on his own? Well, they weren't partners for nothing. She should have known that they'd be on the same wavelength.

That was one thing made easier.

Ladybug silently thanked Chat for that as she leapt out onto her balcony and swung into the night, taking the rooftop path she had memorized into her subconscious. In no time, she was in front of the Eiffel Tower and she let her gaze trail over the rungs on the right side. When she spotted one muddled shadow and two green, glowing dots, she jumped right next to him onto the railing. It made a small thud; a minor noise that she knew Chat never made in his landings.

For once, Chat didn't say anything, though she knew that he was alert of her presence because of how his ears swiveled a little at her entrance. Her heart clenched; Chat was taking the news of Adrien being Hawkmoth just as badly as she'd feared.

"…Hey," she finally said softly after a minute. "I got your message."

Chat didn't respond right away. He took a while, and when he did say something it was just, "Yeah."

A frown pulled at Ladybug's lips and she sat next to him, swinging her legs on the edge of the metal bar. "I also found out who Hawkmoth was."

Chat turned at this and gazed at her with his green eyes, the beginnings of a smile lifting one corner of his mouth. "Yeah? Of course you did." It was silent for fifteen more seconds, and the two of them just watched the city riddled with lights below them, until Chat finally sighed. "Sorry about this. It's just… I've been thinking this over for, like, three days now but… I really don't want to fight someone who I was close to," Chat said. He knit his brows and amended, " _Am_ close to."

Ladybug sighed. "I know what you mean. I was going to come up here while the sun was still up, but… I procrastinated," she said sheepishly. Chat's chuckle filled the empty air between them.

"This might be the last time we get to sit down like this," Chat mused, and Ladybug made a face.

"Surely you don't think we're going to lose?"

"No, no," Chat waved his hands in front of him, "I mean, once Hawkmoth is defeated- Ladybug and Chat Noir don't really need to stick around, do they?"

Ladybug's eyes widened. She hadn't thought of that.

Chat leaned back on his palms, unaware of Ladybug's eureka moment. "In any case, we should start right away. Do you think we should go in through the bakery or by her balco-"

"Hold on a second," Ladybug interrupted him, confusion written all across her face. "Bakery? _Her?_ "

Chat made a face. "Umm, yes? Hawkmoth's civilian identity?"

"Wait, we aren't thinking of the same person, are we?" So much for being on the same wavelength. "Because I know for a fact that Adrien Agreste does not have a bakery. Or is a _she._ "

Chat immediately reeled back and sputtered. "A-Adrien _Agreste?_ _Adrien_ Agreste? ADRIEN AGRESTE?!"

"Shh!" Ladybug hissed, but Chat just stared at her, mouth dropped open.

"Nobody will hear us. You think Adrien Agreste is Hawkmoth?!" Chat cried out. " _How?!"_ He couldn't decide whether he felt offended or immensely offended. When had he ever wronged Ladybug?!

"I have proof!" Ladybug retorted. "Who's _your_ person?"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng!"

This time it was Ladybug who reeled back and choked on her own spit. There was a wide area of distance between them as they stared each other down incredulously. " _Marinette?!"_ Ladybug bursted. Then she narrowed her eyes. "Hawkmoth," she said slowly, "is a man."

Chat felt irritation prick his ears up at the repeated situation. Instead of offering all the reasons that he had to Plagg, he said, "We don't know that! Besides, _I_ have proof!"

"Well that proof must be invalid because I-" Ladybug cut off whatever she was about to say. She inhaled deeply, closed her eyes, and then opened them. "Okay, you go first."

Chat shot Ladybug a dubious look at her change in course, but didn't comment. "Okay. Well. Firstly, she always disappears during akuma attacks." Ladybug opened her mouth and physically shut it with her hand before she could do anything stupid. Chat took no notice. "Secondly, she's never been akumatized. Now maybe there could be a _slim_ chance of that but then she _lied_ about being akumatized! Why would she have to lie unless she was Hawkmoth?!"

Ladybug looked lost for words and Chat crossed his arms. "It was hard for me to accept, too."

"Wait, you said she lied? When?"

Chat brought one leg up to cross over his other one. "She said that she got akumatized but then Ladybug and Chat Noir saved her. Which we didn't."

Ladybug suddenly looked away. "Uh… I don't know… did we? I don't seem to recall…"

Chat gaped at her unbelievingly. " _Ladybug!_ You never forget a fight!"

"I- maybe I do!"

"What is going _on?!"_ Chat exclaimed. "What are _your_ proofs then?"

Ladybug seemed to settle at this. "Well, as a matter of fact, _Adrien_ is always gone during akuma attacks. Also, he once had a book of magic spells!" Chat knitted his eyebrows and was about to ask how she knew, but she continued on, "Added onto that, his mother has disappeared and his father is cold and distant. With the Miraculouses he can change that." Chat clamped his mouth shut. " _Also,_ Adrien lied about being akumatized. He said I saved him which I never did!"

"If you forget fights, maybe you forgot about saving Adrien!"

"I- no! I didn't forget!"

"How would you _know_ if you forgot?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Ladybug yelled. "BUT I DO KNOW THAT MARINETTE CAN'T POSSIBLY BE HAWKMOTH!"

"ADRIEN CAN'T POSSIBLY BE HAWKMOTH!"

"YES HE CAN!"

"NO HE CAN'T!"

"WELL MARINETTE CAN'T BE HAWKMOTH!"

"YES SHE CAN!"

"NO SHE CAN'T!"

In the midst of their very immature shouting match, they had stood up and were now facing each other nose to nose, glaring the other down, heaving for breaths and red-faced. In any other situation, Chat probably would have waggled his eyebrows and Ladybug would have pushed him away, but the two heroes were too busy being frustrated and offended to pay mind.

"How about this," Ladybug said, not once breaking eye contact. "We can go over to Adrien's house right now and straight up ask him. If he acts fishy, or tries to hide something, then we'll have our answer."

"Why should we go to Adrien's house?" Was Chat's response. Ladybug bit the inside of her cheek. "Let's go to Marinette's."

"Why not Adrien's?"

"Why not Marinette's?"

Ladybug growled in irritation and rubbed her temples. "You know what? Fine! You can go to Marinette's house, and I'll go to Adrien's house. We can ask them separately."

Chat clenched his fists. "Sounds good to me."

Without another word the two teens turned around and spitefully jumped off of the Eiffel Tower in opposite directions. However… without further ado… they both turned around. Chat Noir leapt right past an apartment complex, Ladybug on the other side going the other direction, as they both went to their own homes, detransforming there and waiting for their superhero partner to come in vain. If only either of them had turned around once, then they would have seen their comrade going, for some reason, in the wrong direction, and tagged them down to ask what they were doing and effectively sort some things out.

It was also once they were in their own environments that they thought to question how their partner knew that they had lied.

 **I called my inconsistency, so you can't yell at me. Six chapters. Maybe.**

 **Hah… haha… no don't worry… I won't make anything any more confusing and horrible and twisted than it already is.**

… **:)**


	6. Chapter 6

stupid square story chapter 6…

 **err… hello. it has been… more than one and a half years… yeah…**

 **ok, but before you cuss me out or something, I wasn't even planning on finishing this. If you read my snippets last chapter, you'd see that I was done with this account. Finished. No buts no coconuts (that's not the saying, I know).**

 **In fact, I was going to be totally done with fanfiction, PERIOD! But recently I started writing another story. I really like it, and I've prewritten a BUNCH so far and am posting it on a schedule, but on a new account. I didn't want to post it on this one. The story is called** **Strong Woman Marinette Dupain-Cheng** **on** _ **indefinitelyaerequets**_ **on ff and** _ **indefinitely**_ **on ao3** **.**

 **now that story I won't abandon. so if u wanna check it out… ;)**

 **Ok, sorry. I shouldn't be asking for favors. The thing is, I reread all 5 chapters of this cursed story and… like, it's not that bad. 13 year old me wasn't** _ **too**_ **awful, and if I was a reader, I would be frustrated too, that she makes all these promises of "6 chapters" and "non-confusing ending" and then she just leaves. Like, wtf? Have some class.**

 **Long author's note, I know, and ya probably didn't even read it. But I want to finish this once and for all. So here we are; chapter 6. The finale. Dun dun dun…**

If you had asked Adrien about love a week ago, he would have replied without a doubt that he was in it. Love, that is. He knew love had its ups and downs, and up to date, he'd assumed that those "downs" qualified as being rejected over and over again, or not being taken seriously, by Ladybug.

He had not assumed that those "downs" would be discovering how shifty Ladybug was!

"Where _is_ she?" Adrien snapped, irritation mounting each minute that ticked by. 20:41. 20:42. 20:50. She _still_ wasn't at his room like she said she'd be to ask him for proof even though that's where she said she would be!

"Maybe she got caught up," Plagg suggested, trying to be unusually helpful. Adrien narrowed his eyes.

"How? From the Eiffel Tower, it only takes Ladybug one minute to reach my room. And there are no akumas out, either."

"Ughhh…" Plagg felt like he was witnessing one of the stupidest things in history. Next to Archduke Franz Ferdinand's murder in WW1, this ordeal would go on the list of "Things That Could Have Happened Way Easier And Faster With Just A Little Bit Of Thought".

However, the murder actually happened in the end. Almost laughably, after so much effort, the man was shot at point blank range. The job was finally done. (Little history lesson right from the kwami of destruction to all mortals). Plagg could only hope that this whole mess would end the same way, nice and clean, no more stupid complications.

"And you know what's the weirdest thing of all? How did she know I lied?"

 _Breathe in, Plagg. Breathe out. Even though you technically don't need to breathe—just calm down._ "Well, what do you think?"

"I don't know!" Adrien burst. He rounded on Plagg, hair significantly messier than before and eyes wild. "Do you know?" _You have no idea, kid. If I could I would have told you ages ago._

"Even if I did, what matters is you figuring it out." Urgh, he sounded like Tikki. "Ladybug thinks you are Hawkmoth. You think Marinette is Hawkmoth. And Ladybug somehow knows about your lie even though you told it at school. Try connecting the pieces." Plagg had to refrain from cringing. This whole helpful charade just wasn't doing it for him. Once this whole thing was over, Adrien had better get him three truckloads of cheese.

Adrien was quiet for a long time. "I told the lie at school," he muttered, "Ladybug knows the lie somehow. Ladybug isn't coming here. She thinks I'm Hawkmoth." He fell silent in thought.

His eyes bugged all of a sudden. "Oh my God."

From experience, Plagg knew not to get his hopes up. In fact, it was with dread that he asked Adrien warily, "What?"

"Is Ladybug… akumatized?"

There it was. Despite expecting it, Plagg was fully, unconventionally gobsmacked. "What."

"If Marinette akumatized Ladybug," Adrien said slowly, "then she could have told Ladybug about my lie. Marinette also knows I'm Chat Noir. What if she akumatized Ladybug to lure me into her room so she could take my Miraculous?!" Every word he said was higher in pitch until he ended on a shrill note. Plagg was vaguely impressed that Adrien could come up with a cohesive story that could be so utterly far from the truth in just one minute.

"Did Ladybug _look_ akumatized to you?"

"Is there ever a certain look to an akuma?" Adrien shot back. "Remember Copycat?" God, Plagg wished he didn't. He never wanted to see such a mockery of his powers ever again.

"Oh my God. What do I do? I'm going to be lured into this trap, but then again, this can be the only chance I have to stop Hawkmoth," Adrien blubbered as he paced around the room frighteningly fast. "Marinette is a mastermind. No, wait! I can't be thinking good of the enemy." He paused, wide-eyed. "Is she my enemy? It feels wrong saying that…" Plagg bashed his head repeatedly against Adrien's desk, his holder none the wiser.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. Do I have pepper spray?"

"Pepper spray?!" Plagg exploded, offended. "What do you need _pepper spray_ for? You have my Cataclysm, the strongest, most pure destructive power to grace this galaxy!"

"I don't know!" Adrien yelled back. "I'm nervous!"

"Why are you nervous?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Adrien checked all of his drawers, including the sock and underwear ones. "Oh, I have a mace."

"Please tell me you mean the spray." Adrien pulled out a weapon with a long metal shaft and spiked head. "Adrien. Why do you have a mace?"

"I dunno, cosplay or something?" He tested it in his hand. "Would this do?"

"You have a baton. An infinitely extending, stronger-than-steel, unbreakable baton that can split into two."

Adrien was quiet. He was looking intently at the spiked head of the mace and unceremoniously dropped it on the ground. There was a startlingly loud crack at that, but either he didn't notice or didn't care. "You're right. I could never use that thing on Marinette." He shook his head. "And I also need to free Ladybug from akumatization." He sucked in a large breath and released it. "I have no time to be nervous."

Plagg rolled his eyes. "You have all the good intentions but none of the brain cells to back them up," he muttered under his breath as Adrien shouted, "Transform me!"

…

Ladybug was antsy. She had half-considered bringing her thickest, longest sewing needles with her in case she had to use them as darts or something, but after Tikki talked her out of it she left them at home. She was kind of glad she did. The presence of them could have just amplified her nerves.

Not that she was nervous. No, Ladybug had no room to be nervous. After all, Chat Noir was akumatized, Adrien was waiting to lure her into a trap, and she had to defeat him tonight. She had to be on her A-game.

Ladybug pushed across rooftops, focused and faster than ever before. The wind numbed her face and blew her hair behind her. Nothing could stop her now. She was a lady on a path and there would be no branching off—

Two very familiar, glowing green eyes suddenly popped into her sight and she screamed, grounding to a halt. She ended up having to flail to keep her balance.

"Again?!" She snapped, only realizing a moment later that _right,_ Chat was akumatized. She instantly took two steps back and tensed up.

Chat looked like a cat with his hackles raised. He was even holding his baton in front of him. Fitting, Ladybug thought, for an akumatized victim. Although she really had to give Adrien props for this one—having an akuma that didn't look different at all was a very good trick. But not good enough to trick her!

She discreetly scanned his person. Where could his item be? Or rather, _what_ could his item be? She didn't see anything out of the ordinary. His pockets seemed empty. In the dark she couldn't really tell if his ring was black or dark purple. How would it even work if the akuma was in his ring? Would she have to break the Miraculous? Could she even do that?

"Ladybug," he finally said, voice tight. She almost jumped. "Fancy seeing you here."

"I could say the same," she said just as surreptitiously. "Did you check with Marinette?"

He froze up, then countered with, "Did _you_ check with Adrien?" Aha! She knew it. He was trying to lure her to Adrien's—no, Hawkmoth's—hideout.

"I asked you first."

"I asked you second."

"Chat!"

"Ladybug."

She growled. There was no other way to go about it. If she was going to defeat Chat before going to Hawkmoth, she would have to stop beating around the bush. "I know you didn't go to Marinette's place."

"Wha—"

"I know you're akumatized!" She shouted. "So let's just make this easy for both of us. Hand it over, Chat!"

His eyes rounded into two saucers. " _What?!"_ She expected him to jump away shouting 'Never!', or something like that, but what he said next baffled her. "I'm akumatized? _You're_ akumatized!"

Ladybug was caught off guard for one second before squinting again. "Sounds like something an akumatized person would say."

Chat lowered his baton. "Hold on, Ladybug. You think I'm akumatized."

She lowered her own weapon too. Uncertainty was seeping into her. "Well… now I'm not so sure." He wasn't actively trying to lure her anywhere, or attack her. "You think _I'm_ akumatized."

It was quiet for a long few moments. "Neither of us are akumatized, are we?"

…

They were seated on the Eiffel Tower again—back to square one. Except the night was much less younger this time around, and Adrien would snooze off into a deep sleep if confusion wasn't keeping him awake.

"So let me get this straight." He held up a hand and began counting off on clawed fingers. "You think Adrien is Hawkmoth." A nod. "I think Marinette is Hawkmoth. You thought I was akumatized, and I thought the same for you."

"Right." She paused. "We actually think really alike… except Marinette's not Hawkmoth."

He refrained from protesting right away. If they got into an argument again, they'd go in circles. He was determined to get to the bottom of it all. "All the reasons you gave for Marinette are the same for Adrien."

"Except Adrien actually has reason to be Hawkmoth."

"Well, we don't know about Marinette's life. Maybe she has a secret wish or something." He saw Ladybug open her mouth and quickly continued, "Besides, that's not the point. How did you know about Adrien's lie?"

"How did you know about Marinette's lie?"

"I asked you first!"

"I asked you second."

He rubbed the bridge of his nose. This was awful. "Ladybug, we need to work together in order to get to the bottom of this."

"It's not Marinette. How could you think Marinette was Hawkmoth?" Ladybug asked. For some reason she sounded hurt. "I thought you two were friends. Don't you guys hang out and share treats?" Before he could ask how the heck she knew _that,_ she continued, "Hawkmoth is an evil villain! And yet you're so sure that Marinette, who has always been nice to you, is Hawkmoth."

Her words made him feel guilty. He could feel redness in his cheeks, but he protested, "The smartest villains are the ones you won't expect. Besides, you thought it was Adrien. _He's_ not evil or rude, is he?" Now it was Ladybug's turn to be shamefaced. "Haven't you saved him from attacks before? How could you think it was him?"

"Well, it's not Marinette," she retaliated. "I'm one hundred percent positive."

"You were just as positive about Adrien being Hawkmoth," Chat snarked, "which he's not."

"IT'S NOT MARINETTE!" Ladybug exploded. "Do you want to know why? 'Cus I'M MARINETTE!" He froze. "And you know what, I'll probably regret this later because I'm not supposed to tell you who I am but you keep thinking I'm Hawkmoth and I have no way of telling you I'm not without telling you my identity so screw it! I'm Marinette! It's me!" She heaved for breath. The adrenaline coursing through her veins prevented any regret from sinking in. In fact, it made her think, _Wow. I did not know how much I needed that._

"…oh," Chat finally uttered, blinking. Ladybug puffed up a little bit, the competitive side in her relishing in his loss. "Well… I'm Adrien… so there's that."

She deflated. The adrenaline quickly froze over to ice in her veins instead. "And you're right. I'll probably regret this tomorrow, too, so I'll get it out while I can still talk. I think we've both been really stupid." He scratched his cheek and looked off into the distance. "Wow."

It all clicked in her head with startling clarity. Adrien was always gone because he was _Chat Noir._ Adrien had lied because he was _Chat Noir._ Chat knew she lied because he was _Adrien._

 _Ohhh… fuck._

…

"Marinette still not here yet?" Nino asked, gesturing to the empty space next to Alya.

"Nope." Her lips curved up into a grin. "You wanna sit up here? I'm sure Marinette will thank me." Nino grinned back at her before moving up to join her. He peered over to the phone in her hands.

"What are you doing now?"

"New update to the Ladyblog," Alya said, tilting the screen so he could see. "Hawkmoth map."

Nino leaned in, wide-eyed. "Hawkmoth map?"

"Yup. I took the bar graph and made it into a map form. Each butterfly is where a person was akumatized. Maybe Hawkmoth is able to akumatize people only within a radius. Ladybug and Chat Noir could use this map to track him down."

"Wow," Nino whistled. He turned to Alya with an adoring look in his eye. "You're doing so much to help out. That's amazing. You're amazing."

Alya grinned and bopped his nose. "I know." Before they could get too mushy, Adrien and Marinette walked in at the same time. Alya nudged Nino with a snicker. "Let's see what happens."

Adrien came in first. He saw the lack of Nino at his desk, spotted his seatmate sitting next to Alya instead, and stopped in the doorway for two seconds before proceeding, if not a bit mechanically. He sat down at the very edge of his seat. Marinette came in right after and went through the same steps as Adrien, sitting on the very opposite end.

"That's weird." Alya frowned as she glanced between them. "Shouldn't Marinette be more excited?"

"I didn't think Adrien would be so off, either," Nino agreed as he looked down, perplexed. Both of them seemed awfully tense and were dutifully avoiding catching the other's eye.

"Hold on…" Alya squinted at the two, then glanced down to her map. "Hey, Nino, is it just me, or is the Dupain-Cheng bakery in the middle of a lot of these attacks?"

Nino looked at the map. His eyes slowly widened. "You're right. But so is Adrien's mansion." He pointed. Another clump of akuma attacks surrounded the Agreste manor.

They both turned to face each other and whispered, "Is one of them Hawkmoth?"

 **aaannnd…. cut. Now that I wrote this all out… I feel kind of crappy. But it's better than no ending, right?**

 **Again, new account at** _ **indefinitelyaerequets**_ __ **(this site) or** _ **indefinitely**_ __ **(ao3). I think I may continue snippets; not as regularly as I did before, but if I have an idea, I'll post it there. But that account is my new one.**

 **Good bye :)**


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